Constipation, how to avoid

Uncomfortable and sometimes inconvenient, constipation is bothersome at best and a symptom of another health problem at worst. The experts at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota suggest the following lifestyle changes to ease most constipation concerns.*

1. Eat more fiber - 20 to 35 grams a day. Eat more beans, fruits, vegetables and whole grains.
2. Drink more water - the 8 glasses a day regimen which will soften your stool and help digest the extra fiber.
3. Do more exercise - something moderately intense for 30 minutes a day.

If the above doesn't help and over the counter treatments don't help, see your doctor.

*Source: Family Circle 4/10

Are you hiding fat?

What you can't see may hurt you. A Boston University School of Medicine study showed that a healthy body-mass index may not show the amount of dangerous fat in and around one's heart or other vital organs. And these internal fat deposits help to decrease cardiovascular function.

Exercise physiologists at the University of Alabama at Birmingham also warn of hidden fat around your organs can increase the risk of cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes.

The good news is you can reduce visceral fat through diet and exercise. Once lost, this fat is easier to keep off than subcutaneous fat which lies just beneath the skin. The University of Alabama study showed that 80 minutes of aerobic or strength exercise a week will keep this fat from reforming around your organs.

A University of Southern California study found that increase fiber in your diets also helped to decrease the amount of harmful fat in and around the human body's middle area where the important organs are.

For more fiber, snack on fresh fruits and veggies, eat oatmeal for breakfast and choose brown rice/whole wheat over processed grains.

Source: GetFitNow by Michael O'Shea in Parade Magazine of 12/6/09